


Crashing Waves

by FunandFictional



Category: Free!
Genre: College, F/M, Mermaids
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-22
Updated: 2015-07-24
Packaged: 2018-02-26 14:02:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 11,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2654648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FunandFictional/pseuds/FunandFictional
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mermaids and college student Sousuke</p><p>Sousuke x OOC (Izumi)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

The waves crash along the rocky shore. The air is warm, but a storm could start at any second. That was what the rainy season was like here. Here in this place, located between the land of the humans and the water of the creatures. Here is where the two connect and yet a barrier still exists. There are stories of the few who broke the barrier, but fairy tales with mermaids and magic aren’t real. At least, not real for those on shore…

_~ May 25, 2014:_ _Izumi ~_

“Are you sure you don’t want to come?”

“No thanks. I’d rather stay home. I hope you enjoy your trip.”

“Hey, don’t have too much fun while we’re gone, alright? And Izumi?”

The brunette turned her head to look at her sister, Umeko. “Hmmm?” “Try not to spend all day staring at the humans. It’s kinda creepy.” Umeko teased. Izumi’s face reddened slightly.

“It’s not creepy. They are just really interesting. Don’t you have to go soon? The swim to the coral reef is going to take you at least a week.” Floating closer to Izumi, Umeko tried to wrap her arms around Izumi, but she just swam slightly out of reach.

“Okay, I’m leaving. You sure you don’t want to come? There are humans near the reef as well. You could maybe stare at those ones,” she said with a smirk. “Even though the cute one you’ve been watching won’t be there. So I guess it makes sense why you’d want to spend the summer here. You’re crushing so hard on a human.”

Smacking her older sister lightly on the shoulder, Izumi pouted. “Stop teasing me. I don’t have a crush on a human.”

“But you do,” Umeko replied. “And with that, I’ll see you in a few months.”

Pulling her sister in for a hug, Izumi sighed. “I will miss you. Even though you’re super mean to me.”

Laughing, Umeko gave her a kiss on the cheek. “You love me. And Mr. Tall-Dark-And Handsome.”

Swimming away, Umeko laughed as Izumi shouted after her. “I don’t gave a crush on a human.”

Once her sister was out of sight, Izumi sighed. Glancing down at her teal scales, she frowned. _“Not that it would matter. There’s no way I could ever have the courage to talk to him. He would probably just be one of those humans that think mermaids don’t exist. I just wish I could find out his name.”_

_~ June 8: Sousuke ~_

“Sousuke, why don’t you take the rest of the day off? I don’t want you stressing yourself out too much. Classes only just started, so I want to make sure that your focus is primarily on your schoolwork.”

Glancing up from the counter, Sousuke shrugged at his dad. “I’m not too stressed out. None of my classes are really assigning too much in the first week. Besides, I don’t want to leave you to do all the work.”

Walking over to his son, Yamazaki-san patted him lightly on the back. “Why don’t you head over to the beach? You were going everyday before school started up.”

“Fine, I’ll go.” Grabbing his backpack, he headed towards the door.

“And Sousuke,” Yamazaki-san called out. “No swimming.”

Ignoring his father, Sousuke pushed out the store’s front door. “See you later.”

The walk to the beach from the store took about ten minutes, so Sousuke pulled out his headphones. Putting them on, he cranked his music up. To drown out his thoughts.

 _“I can’t believe him. I don’t need to be babied just because my shoulder is a little messed up,”_ Sousuke thought, angrily. _“Does he really think that me going to the beach is a good idea? Just makes me think about those idiots swimming happily in Australia. Dammit, why do I have to go through surgery? I’m not planning on swimming competitively again. Why can’t I just leave it? Wish no one knew about it. Life was so much easier when they didn’t know. Now I’m just trapped here waiting for them to cut open my shoulder. Don’t even know when I’m going to be able to swim again. If I’ll ever be able to swim again…”_


	2. Drowning

_~ June 8: Izumi~_

_“So bored,”_ Izumi murmured as she swam under the waves, collected shells on the ocean floor. _“Maybe I should have just gone with Umeko. I haven’t even seen him in two weeks,”_ Izumi blushed when she realized what she had just thought. _“No, I don’t have a crush on that human. He was just someone interesting to look at. I don’t care that he hasn’t shown up in two weeks. I don’t care.”_

Plopping down on the ocean floor, she stared up at the sky. Through the water, she couldn’t see the color of the sky, but she could notice the clouds. _“Great, rain. That means there won’t be any humans today. So boring… Well, at least that means I can go closer to shore. Maybe I’ll be able to find some human stuff left behind.”_

Shrugging her shoulders, Izumi propelled herself upwards. Letting just her eyes peek out of the water, she glanced around. Looking left and right. “ _Yep, nobodies here.”_

Swimming closer to shore, she kept her head down in case someone showed up. Izumi had been warned to not let humans see her, so she was careful. Close enough that she could still keep her shoulders in the water, she searched around the sand.

“Come on. They have to have left something interesting. They always seem to lose something,” Izumi muttered under her breath. Swimming further along the coast, she spotted something bright green. “There!”

Rushing over she was about to grab the object when she saw movement. Glancing up, she saw legs. Her eyes shot up and met with his for just a second. _“Oh no,”_ She quickly ducked her head under the water and swam further out. _“Please say they didn’t see me. Please say they didn’t see me.”_

_~Sousuke~_

Too focused on his own thoughts and his loud music, Sousuke didn’t immediately notice how dark the sky was getting. Not until he was already stepping onto the beach. Feeling a few drops of water hit his face, he glanced up.

 _“Shit, now it’s raining. I should’ve just stayed at the shop. Better head back.”_ Sousuke thought angrily.

Glancing at the ocean for a bit, he noticed something move in the water. Walking a bit closer, he squinted at the… person? Looked like a girl. The brown hair was pretty long for a man. _“She doesn’t seem to notice it is raining. Should check if she’s okay.”_

Sousuke began to walk towards her, when her head shot up. Bright green eyes met with his blue eyes. She blinked for a second and she looked shocked. No, more than that. She looked scared.

He was about to say something when she disappeared into the water. Staring for a few seconds, he waited for her to pop back up. After a few more seconds, he realized that she wasn’t coming up for air.

“Hey! Hey, can you hear me?” Sousuke shouted as he ran towards the water.

Throwing his iPod and headphones onto the sand, he quickly discarded his sweatshirt before running into the waves. Diving under the waves, he blinked his eyes open and searched for her. _“Dammit, where did she go? I can’t let her drown.”_

Pushing against the waves, he felt his shoulder begin to sting, but he kept looking. Going up for air, he quickly dived back down to continue looking.

Waves battered against him and Sousuke clutched at his shoulder in pain. _“Shit, not now.”_

_~Izumi~_

“Hey! Hey, can you hear me?” A man’s voice shouted in the distance.

 _“Oh no. Someone saw me. Umeko’s going to kill me if she finds out,”_ Izumi thought. Panicked, she listened to hear if he was going to say anything else. After a few moments of silence, Izumi gave a sigh of relief. _“They probably left. I should just check to make sure.”_

Raising herself out of the water, she scanned the shoreline. No one was there. _“Good, they left. Maybe I’m not going to be in trouble,”_ Izumi thought. _“I should just go home for now. I’m exhausted after that scare. Wait, I forgot about that thing on the shore. I should quick go and grab it. I’ll just be more careful this time.”_

As she swam back towards the shore, she noticed a black object. _“That wasn’t there before. Wait, wasn’t that human wearing black?”_ Whipping her head in all directions, she tried to locate the human. Diving under the water, she noticed a dark form further into the water. _“What is he doing”_

Rushing over to him, she froze. _“It’s him! The human who I… How did I not realize it was him?”_ Getting closer to him, she noticed his eyes were closed and air was flowing out of his mouth and nose.

Wrapping her arms around his waist, she pulled him up and out of the water. Staring at his face for just a bit, she slowly pulled him to the shore, careful not to let his mouth sink below the water.

Looking around, she noticed the brown structure that humans had put there a while ago. That thing that humans would dive off of. They would also sit on it and sometimes try to catch fish from it using their strange poles. _"I should have listened to Umeko when she told me what it was called. Not that that matters right now."_ It stuck out past the shore and the water was high enough that she should be able to push him onto it.

Guiding him, she was being very careful to be gentle. Hopefully he would be okay. She knew that humans couldn’t stay in the water for too long, but she wasn’t sure how much time was too long. Being so focused on her task, she didn’t notice when his eyes slowly started to open.


	3. Introductions

_~ June 14: Sousuke ~_

“Heading to the beach?” Yamazaki-san asked as he watched Sousuke pack up his stuff.

“Yeah, unless you needed me for anything?”

“No, no. Go ahead,” Yamazaki-san chuckled to himself. “Hopefully you’ll bring this girl by sometime soon.” Sousuke blushed at his father’s comment, but chose to ignore him.

“See you tomorrow,” Sousuke replied as he stepped out onto the street.

Walking toward the beach, he sighed. _“If I can even find her. I just wanted to thank her for helping me out. It’s been almost a week, maybe today will be the day she comes back. I just want to thank her, that’s all.”_ He blushed again thinking of his father’s comment, but continued walking towards the beach.

It was a later in the day, so most people were already gone. Quickly making his way over to the dock, he settled himself on the end. Letting his feet sink into the water, he glanced around. Hoping to spot the girl, he sighed when he didn’t see her.

After the scary experience, he had woken up on this dock. He didn’t remember her pushing him onto the dock, but he definitely remembered her face. Brown, wavy hair, and bright green eyes. Her swimming skills had impressed him. Somehow she had been able to easily pull him though the waves with one of her arms wrapped around his waist. She had even managed to keep his head above water. The strength to do all that had surprised Sousuke, but he was grateful that she had helped him after his stupid shoulder had given out on him. He had also been relieved that she hadn’t drowned because he would have felt immensely guilty if he hadn’t been able to save her.

Continuing to stare at the ocean, he would let his eyes sweep over the beach every few minutes to check for her arrival. Nothing. Actually, most people were leaving.

Glancing down, he checked his watch. _“9 PM? When did it get so late? I better go.”_

Lifting his legs out of the water, he was about to head back when he noticed something move out of the corner of his eye. Quickly, he turned to stare at the movement. Brown hair. Two green eyes poked out of the water and stared at him for a second. Sousuke blinked for a second before realizing it was her.

_“How did I not notice her swimming earlier? How long has she been out there?”_

“Hey! Can you swim over here for a second?” Sousuke called out to her from the end of the dock. She blinked her eyes at him a few times before shaking her head.

“No? Come on, I just want to talk to you for a second!” Sousuke paused. _“Okay, that sounded kinda creepy.”_

“Sorry, I just want to thank you for last week,” Sousuke shouted. “You were the one who saved me right?”

Nodding her head, she swam closer. Stopping just a few feet away from the dock, she raised her head fully out of the water and looked up at him.

Sitting back down on the dock, Sousuke leaned forward slightly so he could speak to her normally. “I’ve been trying to find you since last week. I really wanted to thank-you for saving me. To be honest, I only jumped into the water because I thought that you had been drowning.” Sousuke chuckled, but stopped when he realized that she was just staring at him.

“Ummm, well. I want to know if there is any way that I can repay you?”

_~ Izumi ~_

_“Why does he keep coming back? He must have figured out I’m a mermaid. Umeko didn’t tell me what I’m supposed to do if a human sees me. What do I do?”_ Izumi thought as she spotted him take sit on that thing again.

Every day since she had saved him, he would sit on that brown thing and look around. _“Maybe he just likes looking at the ocean? That’s a normal thing for humans, right? I don’t know.”_

Glancing at the darkened sky, Izumi realized it was nighttime. _“He must be leaving soon. He never stays this late. I can’t even peek my head out of the water with him looking for me every day.”_

Raising herself out of the water just enough so she could see, she noticed his form. He was getting up, it looked like he was going to leave soon. _“Good.”_

Then, he turned towards her. _“No, turn back around. Don’t notice me.”_

He stared and their eyes met. Izumi felt her face warm as she stared into his eyes. _“They match the ocean. Such pretty eyes…”_

Distracted, Izumi didn’t immediately notice him shout out to her.

“…swim over here for a second?” She heard him shout.

 _“What do I do? I can’t get closer. I’m not even supposed to let him see me. Maybe he’ll just go away if I refuse to listen to him.”_ Shaking her head, Izumi watched as he frowned.

“No? Come on, I just want to talk to you for a second!” He replied.

 _“Please just go away.”_ Izumi pleaded at him in her head.

“Sorry, I just want to thank you for last week. You were the one who saved me right?”

 _“He wanted to thank her? So maybe he didn’t know she was a mermaid! All she had to do was let him thank her and then he would probably leave. Maybe he would even stop coming by and looking for her.”_ Izumi felt a little sad at the last thought, but ignored the sadness.

Nodding her head at him, Izumi swam closer. Stopping so she was within speaking distance of him, she stared up at him.

Sitting down, he leaned his body towards her direction. “I’ve been trying to find you since last week. I really wanted to thank-you for saving me. To be honest, I only jumped into the water because I thought that you had been drowning.” He laughed. Izumi stared, a little shocked.

 _“I’ve never seen him laugh before. He looks so much more handsome when he laughs.”_ Not responding to his question, she tried to keep her face straight so hopefully he wouldn’t notice she was thinking embarrassing thoughts.

“Ummm, well. I want to know if there is any way that I can repay you?” He scratched the back of his head and tilted his head to the right. Waiting for her to answer.

 _“What should I do? I’m not supposed to talk to him, but he wants me to answer. If I don’t answer, he probably won’t leave.”_ Izumi argued with herself as he continued to stare at her.

Possibly sensing her hesitation, the human began speaking. “My name is Yamazaki Sousuke, but you can just call me Sousuke if you want.”

 _“Sousuke. That was this human’s name. I finally have a name for him,”_ Izumi thought happily. _“Such a nice name. I really should respond since he is being nice and he doesn’t seem to know about me being a mermaid.”_

“Ummm, I’m Izumi,” she whispered nervously.

“Izumi-san? Cute,” Sousuke said.

 _“Izumi-san? What does that mean? Is that a human thing? Maybe I should try it,”_ Izumi was slightly flustered at his cute comment, but she wanted to learn more about humans.

“Sousuke-san?” She said slowly, hoping for some sort of confirmation that she had said it correctly.

He smirked. “You don’t have to add -san to my name. You can just call me Sousuke if you want.”

Izumi nodded, thinking. “So, you should just call me Izumi,” she replied.

“Okay Izumi.”

Izumi smiled when he said her name. She never thought that she’d be able to react to a human like this. He was so nice. _“Why did Umeko warn me to stay away from humans?”_

“So, I do still want to thank you for your help. Is there anything I can do for you?”

“No, it’s okay. I’m just glad I was able to help you,” she said.

Furrowing his brows, Sousuke crossed his arms. “At least let me walk you home. It is pretty late for a girl to walk home alone.”

Izumi shook her head furiously. “No!”

“What, why not?”

“I live really close by. You don’t need to go through the trouble. You should just head home now and I’ll head home soon after.”

_“He’s nice, but he can’t know I’m a mermaid. That was the one rule that I've always been told.”_

“I don’t know.” Sousuke frowned at her.

_“Please don’t be stubborn.”_

“I think I’ll wait with you.”

Izumi sighed. “No, please go. Please.”

He watched her with conflicted eyes before shrugging. “If that’s what you want, but can you at least compromise with me a little bit?”

 _“Anything to get him to leave,”_ Izumi thought. “Sure, what is it?”

“Will you meet me again here tomorrow? I’d really like to talk to you some more. I mean, we didn’t even talk about how you heroically saved me.” Sousuke smirked at his last comment, but he did look serious.

_“He’s going to find out I’m a mermaid. He’s going to find out. I’m going to get into trouble... I really want to talk to him again.”_

“Okay. I’ll be here tomorrow,”

Sousuke grinned. “Cool, how about around 12?”

_“12? When was that? Was that another human thing?”_

“Ummm, alright. That sounds fine,” Izumi replied. _“I’ll just watch for him all day and swim over when he shows up.” I_ zumi decided.

“Well, goodnight Izumi.”

“Goodnight Sousuke.”


	4. Humpback Whales?

_~ June 15: Izumi ~_

_“Ugh. If I had known 12 took so long, I would have asked him to come sooner. Why couldn’t he just show up when the sun came up? I guess not many humans do that… Well, it isn’t really nice outside today, so there probably won’t be many humans today,”_ Izumi thought as she scanned the beach again.

When Sousuke had told her he wanted to meet at “12” she had hoped it would be sooner in the day. _“Why did they number their time? I’m so bored. Sousuke, hurry up.”_

 _“Okay, this is the 15th time I’ve come out of the water to look for him. Maybe he isn’t coming?”_ Izumi frowned at the thought. He had seemed like he wanted to talk more. She really wanted to keep talking to Sousuke.

Sighing, Izumi didn’t immediately notice the figure walking across the sand. Turning to look at the man as he walked, Izumi’s face lit up when she realized it was Sousuke.

_“Okay, be cool. Don’t let him get suspicious of you and maybe we’ll just be able to talk more. Just remember the rule. Don’t let any human find out I’m a mermaid.”_

_~ Sousuke ~_

Letting his eyes sweep across the beach a few times, Sousuke didn’t see her. Peering down at his watch, he frowned. _“11:55. I’m a little early. I guess I’ll just go wait on the dock. I mean, we didn’t decide where to meet up, but that seems like the best spot to wait.”_

The dock creaked as Sousuke walked across the wooden boards. Sitting down, he quickly rubbed his sweaty palms against his shorts. _“Damn, why am I so nervous? It’s not like this is a date, we’re just talking.”_ Sousuke’s face heated slightly at the idea. _“Well, I wouldn’t mind if this was a date, Izumi’s pretty cute.”_

“Hi.” A voice startled Sousuke out of his thoughts.

Glancing up, there was no one else on the dock with him.

“Down here.”

Turning towards the sound of the voice, Sousuke was surprised to see Izumi in the water.

“Oh, hey. You scared me a little bit. Didn’t think you’d be swimming today since it is kinda cold.” Sousuke lowered himself so he could sit cross legged on the dock.

Izumi chewed on her lip for a second, before responding, “I guess the cold doesn’t really bother me too much.”

As if to prove her point, a cold gust of wind blew past them and she didn’t even flinch. Sousuke crossed his arms, trying not to show that he was a little cold. _“Should’ve brought a sweatshirt.”_

“Still, you don’t want to catch a cold. You shouldn’t stay in too long,” Sousuke explained.

Izumi lowered herself so just her eyes were over the water. She kinda looked like she was pouting.

“Hey, I’m just trying to help you out. I’m not forcing you to get out right now.”

Raising herself so her whole face was out of the water, Izumi grinned. “Thank-you for trying to help, but I’m fine. Anyways, you said yesterday that you had other things you wanted to talk about, right?”

“Well, I’ve pretty much figured out that you swim a lot, but I’m still surprised that you were able to carry me all the way to this dock when I was close to drowning. You must have pretty strong legs to be able to push both of us through the ocean like that.”

Izumi giggled for a second before nodding. “Yeah, I guess my ta- legs are pretty strong. Must be from swimming so much.”

“So, are you on the swim team at your school? Actually, what school do you go to?”

Chewing on her lip, Izumi began to run her fingers through her hair. “I don’t go to a school. I’m… Well, I’m…”

Noticing her discomfort, Sousuke frowned. “Home-schooled?”

Izumi’s fingers stopped. Pausing for just a second, she nodded. “Yeah, that.”

_“Home-schooled? That’s interesting. Wait, that means…”_

“Izumi, how old are you?” Sousuke asked.

Izumi stopped chewing on her lip and confidently answered, “18, but I’m turning 19 really soon.”

“Oh, really? So, you already finished your home-schooling?”

Nodding quickly, Izumi looked down at her fingers, “Yeah… Um, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“How old are you?”

“Oh, well I just turned 18 a few months ago. I’m surprised that you’re actually older than me. Someone so tiny shouldn’t be the older one,” Sousuke teased.

“I’m not tiny! You’re just huge.”

“Huge? Well, excuse me for working out. I only got this way because of how much training I did for swimming.”

Izumi frowned at him. “That doesn’t make sense…” she mumbled.

“What doesn’t make sense?” Sousuke asked.

Surprised that he had heard her, she tilted her head at him. “If you are a swimmer, how did you almost drown? The water wasn’t bad, so you should have been strong enough to swim through it.”

Sousuke stiffened. _“Should I tell her? I hate talking about it, but I don’t want to lie to her. I don’t want her to feel bad for me either. Damn it, this shitty shoulder always running everything.”_

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” Izumi said. She must have noticed his hesitation.

“It’s kind of a touchy subject. I’ll tell you some other time.”

Izumi nodded at him in understanding. “Okay. Well, what other things do you enjoy doing besides swimming?”

“Besides swimming? I guess I’ve committed so much time to swimming, I don’t really know what else I do…”

_“Work out. Eat. Sleep. Work at Dad’s shop. Go to classes. Physical therapy. None of this stuff is really interesting.”_

“What about you, Izumi?”

Izumi’s face lit up at his question. “Oh, I love reading! I always love learning more about hum-“ Izumi stopped.

Sousuke raised an eyebrow at this. “What was that?”

“I love reading about… Ummm. Humpback whales!” Izumi blurted out.

“Humpback whales?”

Izumi nodded quickly and continued, “Well, not just humpback whales. Ummm, I like reading about all sorts of sea creatures.”

“I guess that makes sense. Since you practically live in the ocean. Do you ever come out?” Sousuke said, smirking at her.

“I’m not always in the ocean…” Izumi mumbled.

Sousuke’s eyebrows raised at her tone. “Izumi, I was just teasing you. I don’t care if you like staying in the water.”

“I’m gonna keep swimming for a while. I’ll talk to you tomorrow?” Izumi asked.

Frowning, Sousuke shook his head. “Sorry, I have classes most of the day tomorrow. You really don’t want to hang out anymore today?”

Izumi sighed and shook her head. “No, sorry. I don’t talk to hu- others very much, so talking this much has kinda tired me out. I’m sorry, Sousuke.”

“No, it’s fine. Don’t apologize. I’ll see you in two days, okay? Want to meet here again at the same time?”

Izumi nodded, but her eyes wouldn’t look up to meet Sousuke’s.

“I’ll see you then, Izumi.”

“Bye Sousuke.”

Izumi dived into the water. As her head sunk under, Sousuke’s eyes widened when he saw something teal pop out of the water for just a second. _“Was that a tail?”_


	5. Promises

_~ June 15: Izumi ~_

_“I’m such an idiot. Humpback whales? He has to know there is something wrong with me. I guess it was nice while it lasted. There’s no way that he isn’t suspicious. He probably thinks I’m crazy and weird and terrible and rude. Probably offended him by leaving early. I hate this.”_

_~ June 29: Sousuke ~_

“Girl problems?”

Sousuke glanced up at his father. Dropping his head onto the counter, he heard the older man chuckle.

“You know you can go. Besides, you’re not being any help here. Just sitting and moping. Make me depressed just looking at ya,”

Yamazaki-san walked over to his son. Patting his shoulder, he smirked when his son looked up at him. “Just like me when I first met your mother. She was a tough one, but she eventually fell for me. You’re smart and you inherited my good looks. I’m sure you can convince this girl to give you a chance.”

Sousuke couldn’t help but crack a grin at his father’s words. “Good looks from you? You sure?”

Smacking Sousuke on the head, Yamazaki-san nodded towards the door. “Get your smart-ass over to that girl of yours.”

Nodding at him, Sousuke quickly gathered up his stuff and left the shop.

_“Well, she's definitely not my girl. It would help if I at least knew how she felt about me. I thought she looked interested, but maybe she was just being nice. Why can’t I get her out of my mind? Maybe she doesn’t even exist. That would make as much sense at when I imagined I saw a tail pop out of the water. First I scare her off and then my mind makes up weird ideas like her having a tail. I must have just been super tired that day and was becoming delusional. Maybe I was accidentally rude? Shit, I can’t just keep looking for her at the beach every day. She’s probably avoided coming to avoid seeing me.”_

_~ Izumi ~_

_“Hmmm. He’s late today,”_ Izumi thought as she gazed at the beach. _“Oh, nope. There he is.”_

Every day at almost the exact same time, Sousuke would appear on the beach. He would go and sit on the “dock” and would wait around for a bit. Then, he would get up and leave.

_“Maybe I should go talk to him. He has been coming every day. Plus, I have been studying the scrolls more. I should be able to understand more of what he says without making it obvious I’m not human. If I’m more careful, maybe he won’t notice anything is wrong. I mean, I’ve learned a lot. I figured out that thing is called a dock, I figured out how their times of the day are timed, and I studied about human schools. I should know enough to carry out a conversation. He looks so sad. I really need to say something to him.”_

_~ Sousuke ~_

_“I’ll stay for only 5 minutes. I really have to go finish that paper, but I just can’t focus. I wish I could just talk to her and figure out what happened.”_

Staring out at the ocean, Sousuke sighed. Scooting himself closer to the side of the dock, he let his legs dangle off the side. Leaning back on his hands, he closed his eyes. Feeling the cool water swirl around his feet, he tried to calm down.

_“Relax. Don’t stress out about school right now.”_

“Are you okay?”

Sousuke’s eyes shot open. Glancing down, he noticed Izumi staring up at him. Blinking, Sousuke rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

“Sousuke?” Izumi asked, sounding worried.

“Where have you been?” Sousuke shouted without thinking. Izumi winced at his volume.

_“Shit. Real smooth genius.”_

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to shout at you. I was just surprised,” Sousuke said, at a normal volume.

Izumi frowned and stared down at the water. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to surprise you. You just looked like something was troubling you.”

“Well, I’ve been coming every day to try and apologize to you. I was feeling kinda rejected, I guess.”

“Sorry. I was just… Umm…” Izumi bit her lip as she tried to reply.

“Do you always bite your lips when you are thinking?” Sousuke asked suddenly.

Surprised, Izumi looked up at him. Teeth finally releasing her bottom lip, she nodded. “Yeah. I know it’s a bad habit, but I can’t help it.”

“It’s kinda cute,” Sousuke responded.

Izumi bowed her head and Sousuke grinned. “I mean, you’re already pretty cute.”

"Please stop,” Izumi pleaded, still staring at the water.

“Don’t like compliments?”

“I’m just not ready for flirting right now. I thought you were going to be mad at me for avoiding you.”

Sousuke’s eyebrows raised at her comment. _“So, she was avoiding me.”_

“Why were you avoiding me?”

“I can’t really tell you.”

Sousuke frowned. “Did I do something wrong?”

Izumi shook her head.

“Then, how do I know you aren’t just going to go back to avoiding me?” Sousuke couldn’t stop the comment from coming out.

“I wouldn’t do that!” Izumi’s green eye’s met Sousuke’s for just a second before her gaze lowered again.

“Really? How can I trust you? I’ve been coming here every day for two weeks trying to see you. I really like…” Sousuke’s face reddened as he clasped his hand over his mouth. Izumi stared up at him, her eyes wide.

_“Damn, do not need to scare her off again by admitting I like her too soon. Play it cool.”_

“I really like talking to you,” Sousuke blurted out. Izumi smiled.

“I really like talking to you too.”

Sousuke mentally gave himself a pat on the back. "So, we should definitely figure out a plan so we can talk more. I still have school, but I really want to see you regularly."

“How about this? We meet here at this time every other day? That way I won’t be avoiding you and you can keep up with your schoolwork.”

Sousuke nodded at her. “Sounds like a good idea. Anything to keep you from avoiding me again.”

Izumi sighed. “I am really sorry about that.”

Tilting his head to the side, he frowned. “I believe you. I just want to know what happened.”

“It’s pretty personal.”

Sousuke nodded. “Do you promise to tell me some day? After we know each other better?”

Thinking for a second, Izumi gave a quick nod. Sousuke saw what looked like fear in her eyes, but he couldn’t be positive. “I promise. Just can you promise me something?”

“Anything.”

_"Anything to get that frown off your face."_

“When you find out, will you still come and talk with me and be my friend?” Izumi stared directly into his eyes and he could tell that she was serious.

“As long as it isn’t something like you murdered someone,” Sousuke joked to try to lighten the mood.

Izumi giggled before nodding. “No, I’m murder- free. Promise.”

Sousuke grinned and was relieved to see the fear leave her expression.

“Then, I promise I’ll be still be your friend no matter what you end up telling me.”

_“Maybe by then… We’ll be more than just friends.”_


	6. In or Out

_~ July 8: Sousuke ~_

_“She better not be swimming,”_ Sousuke thought as he gazed out at the empty beach. Sousuke had to squint to see through the heavy rain. The rain was falling quickly onto his umbrella. Luckily, it wasn’t windy, but it was definitely the middle of rainy season. So far, the rain had not been too bad. Except today. It was absolutely miserable outside. _“At least I get to talk to Izumi again. Missed seeing her yesterday because of class. Geez, I’m starting to miss her even when I see her every other day. Rin would love to tease me about this.”_

Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays were when Sousuke had 3 of his classes. Luckily, Sousuke only had one class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. That meant that he could visit Izumi Tuesdays, Thursdays, and for most of the day on weekends. His dad gave him light teasing for not helping out as much, but seemed to understand.

Sousuke was almost never late to their meetings. 12 PM. Almost exactly ever time. Unless class let out late. And every time, Izumi would be swimming near the dock. Not one had Sousuke seen her out of the water. Not once. After having hung out 5 times now. That girl was obsessed with swimming.

Walking to the dock, Sousuke was surprised to see Izumi wasn’t there. _“Weird, she is always here before me.”_

“Hi Sousuke!” Izumi popped out of the water and waved.

“What the hell?” Sousuke jumped when she appeared.

“Did I scare you?” Izumi smirked up at him. Well, it looked like a smirk. It was hard seeing her through all the rain.

“Why the hell are you swimming right now? It is raining like crazy. You’re going to get sick. Come on, get out of the water.” Moving his umbrella to his right hand, Sousuke leaned over and held out his left hand towards her.

Izumi swam back and shook her head. “It’s okay. I won’t get sick. The water is actually pretty warm today.”

Sousuke frowned and kept his hand out. “Izumi, I’m not messing around. You have to get out of the water. It isn’t windy now, but the waves could get pretty rough.”

“Sousuke, I promise I’m fine.”

“No, if you don’t get out now…”

Izumi raised an eyebrow at him. “What are you going to do?”

“I’ll come in there and get you,” Sousuke replied immediately. _“Well, that might not be the best idea. She can definitely out swim me with my shoulder.”_

“What? No, stay up there.” Izumi said, sounding a little panicky.

“Well, you either come out or I go in.”

“Please don’t.”

“Why not? Izumi, it’s not safe for you to stay in the water.”

Izumi sighed and looked conflicted. “Please just let me stay in.”

Sousuke frowned and shook his head. “No, it isn’t safe. Look, we’re friends. Please, do this for me. I just want to make sure you're safe.”

“I can’t,” Izumi whined.

“What? Do you need help getting out?”

Izumi shook her head.

“Then what? Izumi, I’m giving you five seconds before I’m coming in to pull you out.”

Izumi’s eyes widened. “No, Sousuke please…”

“Five.”

“Sousuke, don’t.”

“Four.”

“I can’t!”

“Three.”

“Sousuke!”

“Two.”

“Okay! I’ll tell you!” Izumi shouted as tears began to form in her eyes.

_~ Izumi ~_

_“I can’t tell him. I can’t tell him. I’ve been told my entire life that I can’t let a human know what I am. I can’t tell him.”_

“Then what? Izumi, I’m giving you five seconds before I’m coming in to pull you out.”

_“If he comes in, he’ll see my tail. Or he’ll pull me out of the water and see. If I swim away from him, he’ll probably swim after me. He might drown. He almost drowned that other time. I can’t let him come in the water.”_

“No, Sousuke please…”

“Five.”

_“Oh no. He’s serious.”_

“Sousuke, don’t.”

“Four.”

_“How do I get him to stop?”_

“I can’t!”

“Three.”

_“He’s not listening.”_

“Sousuke!”

“Two.”

_“I have to stop him.”_

“Okay! I’ll tell you!” Izumi could barely see him with the tears clouding her vision. _“I have to tell him. If he comes in the water, he’ll either find out himself or get hurt. He’s just trying to help me.”_

“Make it quick.”

“I’m not like you. I’m not exactly…” Izumi trailed off. _“How do I tell him? What if he freaks out? What if he runs away?”_

“Not exactly, what?”

Gazing at him, Izumi couldn’t tell if it was rain or tears running down her face. “Do you remember what you promised me? What I asked you to promise me for when I would tell you my secret?”

Sousuke nodded, his face showing his concern. “I remember. Of course I remember. I’m still going to be your friend. I promise.”

“Are you sure?” Izumi stared at him, looking for any uncertainty.

“Yes, but please hurry up. As your friend, I’m getting really worried about you being in the water.”

“You never have to be worried about me being in the water. Never.”

“What? Why not?”

Izumi took a deep breath in. _“Please keep your promise.”_

“I’m a mermaid.”


	7. Mermaids and Humans

_~ July 8: Sousuke ~_

“I’m a mermaid,” Izumi said.

Sousuke paused and raised an eyebrow at her. “You really expect me to believe that? Stop messing with me.”

“No, I can show you!” Izumi floated back a few feet. Then, a long tail arose from the water. It was a bright teal, contrasting against the dark water.

Sousuke stared at the tail and blinked. Rubbing his eyes with his left hand, he was amazed that it was still there when he looked again. _“Wait, so that other time… I did see a tail? How is this possible?”_

“Am I asleep?” Sousuke dropped down to his knees and continued to stare at the tail. _“No. This doesn’t make sense. Mermaids aren’t real.”_

“Are you disgusted?” Izumi asked.

 _“Disgusted?”_ Sousuke finally looked away from the tail and into Izumi’s eyes. Her teeth were biting at her lower lip, which was trembling slightly.

“Why would I be disgusted?” Sousuke finally managed to say.

“Because I tricked you into thinking I was a human, but I’m not. You don’t think I’m some monster?”

“No, of course not.”

Izumi moved her tail so it was once again under the water. “Really?”

Sousuke nodded. “Yeah. I mean, I’m definitely shocked, but you aren’t a monster. A monster wouldn’t have saved my life.”

“So, you aren’t scared of me?” Izumi was gazing up at him hopefully.

“How could I be scared of a tiny thing like you? Even with the tail, I could probably carry you easily.” Sousuke smirked at her.

Izumi stuck out her tongue at him. “I’m not tiny.”

 _“So cute,”_ Sousuke thought as he smiled down at her.

“Sousuke?”

“Hmmm?”

“So, you promise not to tell anyone else, right?”

“Of course. I can keep a secret.”

_“Kept my shoulder a secret for how long…”_

Izumi swam closer to the dock and pulled herself up, so her arms were resting on top of its surface. Crossing her arms, she rested her head on them. Turning her head to look at him, she smiled warmly at him.

“Thank-you Sousuke. I’m really glad I saved you.”

Sousuke felt his face redden. _“Wow, I only saw her this close when she saved me.”_

“Even though you were super heavy and huge and hard to pull through the water.”

“You’re a freaking mermaid. It shouldn’t have been any trouble for you to pull me.” Sousuke argued.

Izumi laughed and hid her face in her arms.

“What? Why are you laughing?” Now Sousuke’s entire face was on fire. _“Shit, I have a crush on a mermaid. Why do I have the worst luck?”_

“I’m a mermaid and that makes me super strong?” Izumi raised an eyebrow at him, grinning widely.

“I don’t know. You’re able to swim in the ocean. That seems like it would make you strong enough to pull me.”

“Yes, because my arms are clearly as strong as my tail.” Izumi teased, grin never leaving her face.

“Well, I’m sorry that I’m not an expert on mermaids. Ten minutes ago I didn’t know mermaids existed. And now my….” Sousuke clamped his hand over his mouth. _“She’s not mine. Damn, my dad's constant teasing did this."_ _  
_

Sousuke watched as Izumi lifted her head and stared at him through the rain. Moving closer to her, he moved his umbrella to cover both of them.

“You don’t have to. Water clearly doesn’t bother me,” Izumi stared up at the umbrella. She bit her lip, clearly thinking about something.

“I know, it just seemed right.” Sousuke stared down at her. _“Maybe she didn’t hear my slip up."_

“Hmmmm,” Izumi nodded, but still seemed preoccupied.

“Izumi?”

“Oh, sorry. Can I ask you a question?” Izumi met his eyes.

“Ummm, sure.”

“What’s that called?” Izumi pointed up above Sousuke.

Turning his head, all he saw was his umbrella.

“What?” Sousuke moved his umbrella slightly so he could look behind himself.

“That thing you’re holding. I used to know what it was called, but I forgot.”

“Oh, my umbrella?” Sousuke asked, tapping it with his left pointer finger.

Izumi nodded and grinned. “Umbrella! That’s it. I knew it was something weird.”

Sousuke thought about her statement for a second. “I guess that makes sense. You live in the water, so you don’t need umbrellas.”

Izumi nodded. “But I read about it! We have a lot of tablets that the elders wrote on. They taught us human language and about humans. When we learn new things, we make sure to etch it into the stones. We learn a lot, but some words just aren’t important.”

“You etch your writing into stone tablets?”

“Well, what else would we do? Paper doesn’t survive under the water,” Izumi explained.

“Huh, I guess so. So, do you have some different mermaid language?”

Izumi shook her head. “No, I think there used to be one, but for some reason we learn the language of the humans near us. I think mermaids and humans used to communicate more, but that was a long time ago. Now, we learn your language. There are some words that we just have to learn because we never experience them. Those are usually the words that I have a lot of trouble remembering. I study a lot though, so I actually have a pretty good grasp of a lot of human stuff.”

“Wow, you did do a good job. I completely thought you were just some girl that really liked swimming. I never imagined that you weren’t human.”

Dropping off the dock and back into the water, Izumi’s face quickly popped back out of the water.

“Well, now you know.” Letting her tail pop out of the water, she grinned up at him.

“Yeah, I guess so. I’m glad I don’t have to worry about you swimming when the weather gets bad.”

“Yep, I just swim away from the bad waves.”

Sousuke took a deep breath in. “This is a lot to take in. I’m still not even positive this isn’t a dream.”

“Yeah, I'm sure. I know a lot about human things, but did you want to know anything else about mermaids?” Izumi asked.

Sousuke nodded and tried to think if he knew anything about mermaids at all. “Can you talk to fish?”

Izumi’s eyes widened in surprise. “No? Can you?”

Sousuke shook his head and laughed at her expression. “No, just there’s a Disney movie called _The Little Mermaid_. I saw it a few times as a kid because it was my best friend’s sister’s favorite movie. The mermaid could talk to fish in it and she sang a lot.”

“What’s a Disney movie?” Izumi asked, confused.

“Oh, Disney is the company that makes the movie. A movie is like… A moving picture book that people can watch. Sometimes there are real people in the movie called actors,” Sousuke hesitated. “I’m really not sure if my explanation is helping. I’ve never had to explain what a movie is to someone before.”

Izumi closed her eyes and mumbled to herself for a bit before finally opening them. “Actors? Like in a play?”

Sousuke nodded. “Yeah, exactly. A movie is kinda like a play, but it is recorded so people can watch it whenever they want.”

“Hmmm, so there is a movie about mermaids? And it says we talk to fish and sing a lot?” Izumi asked.

“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure the people who made it didn’t know mermaids really exist.”

“So most humans don't believe mermaids exist?”

“Nope. The people who do believe in mermaids are usually crazy people,” Sousuke said.

“Crazy people? So, you’re crazy?” Izumi teased.

“Yep, absolutely insane. You really picked the wrong guy to save.”

Izumi giggled. “No, I’m glad I saved you. I’m really glad…” Izumi bowed her head.

Sousuke felt himself blush. “I’m really glad, too.”

Izumi stared up at him and smiled. Sousuke smiled back at her, but felt his heart sink. _“What am I going to do?”_


	8. Decisions

_~ July 9: Sousuke ~_

Unlocking the door, Sousuke slipped quietly into his apartment. Leaning against the door, he let it click shut behind him. Locking it behind himself, he began walking towards his bathroom.

Flicking on the light, he stared at his reflection in the mirror. He was… Smiling? Splashing water onto his face a couple of times, Sousuke stared at his reflection. His eyes looked brighter and his smile was relaxed. Not forced. He actually looked genuinely happy.

_“Huh, haven’t been like this in a long time.”_

Quickly brushing his teeth, he pulled his shirt off as he walking into his bedroom. Throwing it somewhere near his closet, he let himself fall onto his bed. Bouncing slightly, Sousuke pulled one of his pillows under his head.

_“I really shouldn’t be so excited. Izumi makes me happy, but…”_

Sousuke turned onto his back and pushed his pillow into his face. Groaning, he laid there for a bit. Finally, he placed the pillow under his head again.

_“Why do I have the worst luck? What am I going to do? I like her, but… I can’t just date her like a normal girl. She can’t leave the water. Am I going to just keep visiting her at the beach until she gets bored of me? Or maybe until she finds someone else? Am I even going to be able to deal with starting a relationship with a mermaid? How would that even work?”_

Closing his eyes, Sousuke pictured Izumi’s face. Those bright green eyes. Always showing how curious she was. Her biting her lip when she was thinking. The way her whole face seemed to glow when she laughed. Her blush...

Sousuke felt his own face redden. Thinking about her like this.

“I don’t know," Sousuke mumbled, defeated.

Glancing at the clock, Sousuke sighed. 12:30 A.M. “He’s going to be pissed.”

Taking his phone out of his pocket, Sousuke tapped Rin’s number and waited.

*RING*RING*RING*

“What do you want?! You know I’m ahead by 2 freaking hours! It better be good,” Rin shouted.

“Hello to you too,” Sousuke replied, holding the phone away from his ear.

“You have a minute before I hang up on you, dumb ass.”

Sousuke sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Where to start?

“Hey, is everything okay?” Rin asked, suddenly worried by Sousuke’s silence.

“Not really.”

“What’s up?”

“I met someone,” Sousuke stated simply. _“Someone with a tail, but Rin doesn’t need to know that.”_

“You met someone?” Rin repeated slowly.

“Yeah and I’m unsure what to do.”

Rin laughed and Sousuke felt his eye twitch. “You’re calling me because you want dating advice?!”

“Shut up! We aren’t dating,” Sousuke tried to sound assertive, but he came off sounding like he was whining.

“Woah, geez. When did this start?” Rin stopped laughing, but there was still a humorous tone to his voice.

“Middle of June,” Sousuke replied.

“And you're already this desperate? Dude, it has only been a month.”

“Look, it isn’t that easy.”

“What, she dating some other guy?”

“No.”

“She thinks you are an ugly, oversized, idiot?”

“No!”

“Then what? She just not interested?”

“No. Like I said, it isn’t that easy,” Sousuke said. _“How can I explain this to Rin without telling him about the mermaid thing?”_

“Sousuke, what’s bothering you so much?” Rin asked, sounding concerned.

“I just… I don’t think it is going to work out. We hang out a lot, but we are very different. I feel like we just won’t end up working out in the long run. I really like her, but I don’t know how long this can last.”

Rin didn’t immediately answer. Sousuke waited, anxiously, for some sort of response.

Finally, Rin sighed. “You have the worst luck. So, you want a relationship, but you don’t think it is going to work out?” “Yeah.” Sousuke could almost hear Rin shaking his head as he sighed again. “Have you maybe thought that you should just give up on this girl? Find someone who you do think you could have a relationship with? I know you like her, but wouldn’t it be better to stop seeing each other now? Before you get your feelings hurt by her?”

Sousuke stared up at his ceiling. _“Stop seeing Izumi? But, I promised her I wouldn’t do that.”_

“Sousuke?”

“Thanks, Rin. I’ll think about,” Sousuke managed to say.

“Okay, call me if you need anything else.”

“Thanks. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Sousuke let his phone fall out of his hand and onto the bed.

_“Stop seeing her? I can’t. I promised her that I would still be there for her once she told me her secret. I just didn’t think her secret was that she was a mermaid.”_

Letting his eyes drift shut, he could just imagine it. Walking out across the dock, Izumi would pop out of the water and grin at him. And he would tell her he couldn’t do this anymore. And her eyes would show how hurt she was, but she would probably understand.

“I wonder if that would make her cry.”

Thinking about Izumi crying because of him. Sousuke felt his heart ache and he groaned.

“I could just be a coward. Never go to the beach again. Could start jogging in the park. She would never be able to find me. I would never have to see her again…”

“No, that’s cruel. And just because I wouldn’t see it doesn’t mean she wouldn’t still cry. That way would be worse because she would probably be hoping that I would eventually show up. She would just be disappointed for so long.”

Sousuke took in a shaky breath and sat up. Planting his feet firmly on the floor, he gazed at the wall. Raising his hands, he let his face fall into his palms.

“What am I going to do? I’m just talking to myself like a crazy person when I should just talk to Izumi. She probably would know what choice to make. I should just let Izumi decide…”

Dropping his hands, Sousuke blinked a few times. “That’s it! I’ll just let Izumi decide. That way, I can just go with whatever she wants. If she wants me to stay, I’ll stay. If she thinks I should leave, I’ll leave.”

Sousuke felt resistance in him when thinking about leaving, but he shook his head. “I’ll agree to whatever Izumi wants.”


	9. Choices

_~ July 10: Izumi ~_

Poking her head out of the water, Izumi was surprised to see that Sousuke was already sitting on the dock. He had arrived much earlier than usual, which was strange.

“Hey, you’re here early,” Izumi called out as she swam over to him.

Sousuke rubbed the back of his head and nodded. “Yeah, had something on my mind. Something we need to talk about.”

Izumi stared at his face. His eyebrows were furrowed and his mouth was a hard line. “Is something wrong?” Izumi asked, concerned.

“Sort of.”

“What is it?”

Izumi swam close enough that she could lift her upper half onto the dock. Holding herself there, she gently put her left hand on his.

Sousuke stared at her hand and sighed. “What are we going to do?”

“What do you mean?” Izumi tilted her head in confusion.

“Look, I umm…” Sousuke paused and turned his face away.

“Hmmm? You what?” Izumi slowly moved her hand up and grasped his wrist.

Turning back towards her, she could see the faint redness on his cheeks. “I… I like you.”

_“He likes me…”_

Taking in her shocked expression, Sousuke chuckled. “Weren’t expecting that?”

Izumi shook her head, while beginning to chew on her lip.

_“He likes me? But I’m a…”_

“I understand if you don’t feel the same way, I just felt like I needed to tell you that first.”

Izumi stared into his eyes and frowned. “You like me? Even though I’m not human?”

Sousuke blinked in surprise and nodded. “Yeah, I mean… That was kinda the other thing I wanted to talk to you about…”

Sousuke sighed again and he rubbed his face with his right hand.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m not even sure yet if you like me back, but we need to decide this right now. Before we get any closer. Should we even continue seeing each other? I like you, but we can’t easily have a relationship. I don’t even know if you want that, but that’s what I want. Problem is, how long could a relationship between us even last? If we started dating, how long before we break up because…”

“Sousuke, stop,” Izumi patted his hand.

Staring down at her, he sighed. “I want you to decide.”

_“How can I decide? He’s right. How long can we maintain a relationship? The closer we get, the more it will hurt when we finally decide to break up. We won’t ever be able to live together. I’ll never be able to marry him. We won’t be able to truly be together.”_

“Izumi…” Sousuke murmured.

Glancing up at him, she shook her head. “I don’t know. I like you too, but you’re right. How can we be in a relationship? You’re a human. I’m a mermaid. Eventually, one of us will want more. But I don’t want to lose you.”

Sousuke leaned down slowly and gently kissed her forehead. “Please make a decision.”

Izumi blushed slightly at the kiss, but she still was worried. “Why do I have to make the decision?”

“Cause I don’t want to see you cry,” Sousuke replied.

“Either choice, I’m going to cry at some point.”

Sousuke frowned and shook his head. “I’ll do whatever you want. Whatever will hurt you the least. If you want me to leave, I’ll leave.”

“I don’t want you to leave, but…”

_“It’ll hurt so much more if you don’t quit now."_

“How long can we do this for? Me coming to visit you everyday at the beach? How long until one of us wants more?”

_“I already want more.”_

“If you left…” Izumi started before sighing.

“Hmmm?”

“If you left, would you miss me?”

Sousuke smirked. “Of course. Why ask that?”

“I don’t want you to cry.”

The smirk was still on his face, but his eyes looked sadder. “I’ll be fine. Whatever choice you make.”

_“How can he be so relaxed about this? Maybe he doesn’t care as much as I do?”_

“You’ll be fine? With whichever choice I make?” Izumi asked slowly.

Sousuke nodded.

“Then, I think…”

Closing her eyes, Izumi let go of Sousuke’s wrist. Lowering herself back into the water, she gazed up at him. “I think we should stop seeing each other.”

Izumi saw the hurt flash across Sousuke’s face. Then, he nodded.

“I understand. Bye Izumi,” he stood up.

“Bye Sousuke.”


	10. Mopey Butt

_~July 21: Sousuke ~_

“Okay, that’s it.”

Glancing up from the cash register, Sousuke raised an eyebrow at his father.

“What?”

“Get out,” Yamazaki-san replied.

“What are you on about?”

“You’re summer break started a week ago and all you’ve been doing is moping around here. I thought for sure you were going to be spending every second with that girl you were seeing, but now you’re bugging me.”

Rubbing his face, Sousuke rolled his eyes. “Before you wanted me to help out more and now you want me to leave. Make up your mind.”

“Well, I want you to help out more when you aren’t being so depressing. Go do something. I don’t care if you patch things up with her or just go out for a run. Just stop taking up space and scaring customers. I swear that last guy looked liked he was going to cry.”

“I haven’t been that bad.”

“Sousuke, go. Do something enjoyable. It is summer vacation. You only have a short amount of time before you are back in classes. You might as well have fun,” Yamazaki-san walked over to his son and patted him on the back. “Look, I know something bad must have happened with her, but you can’t just be sad all the time waiting for things to get better.”

“Very helpful,” Sousuke muttered as he stood up.

Walking out of the store, he sighed. “ _Now what?_ ”

Standing outside of the store, Sousuke glanced around. _“I guess I’ll just head back to the apartment._ ”

The walk home was short and Sousuke grew angrier with each step he took. _“Why is the old man being so hard on me? I wasn’t moping. I usually scare customers. He wasn’t kicking me out before I met…”_

Sousuke stepping into the apartment building and to the elevator. Selecting the seventh floor, he quickly shot out his hand to stop the door when he saw a woman and child rushing towards it.

“Oh, thank-you!” The woman smiled at him. The little girl stared up at him with curious eyes, but didn’t say anything. She was clutching a doll and hid her face in the doll’s hair.

Sousuke nodded and watched as she selected a floor. The little girl began to dig through her backpack and didn’t seem to notice when something fell out.

The two were about to exit the elevator when Sousuke noticed it. Leaning down to pick it up he called out to them. “I think you dropped this.”

The two turned back to him and the mother smiled as she took it. “Thank-you so much! Emi would have been devastated if she lost her shell necklace. Emi say thank you to the nice man.”

The mother handed the necklace to her daughter, who gazed up at them from behind her mother.

“Thank-you.” She responded quietly. “

You’re welcome.” Sousuke smiled down at her.

“Would you like to come in for some tea? My name is Hana, by the way.” Hana bowed at Sousuke.

Bowing back, he shook his head a few times. “Nice to meet you. My name is Sousuke. I’m actually not feeling very well, so maybe another time.”

“Well, stop by anytime. Like I said earlier, Emi would have been so upset if she lost her shell necklace, so I’m really grateful.”

Sousuke cocked his head to the side. The necklace had been pretty simple looking. “Can I ask why the necklace is so important?”

Hana smiled and patted Emi on the head. “She found it on the beach a while back. Well actually, she claims a mermaid gave it to her as a gift. Isn’t that cute?” Hana chuckled.

Nervously rubbing the back of his neck, Sousuke nodded. “Yeah, cute. Umm, well it was nice meeting you both.”

“Bye-bye. Say good-bye Emi.”

“Bye.” Emi said shyly.

Returning to the elevator, Sousuke leaned against the back wall as the doors shut. Sighing loudly, he exited quickly when the doors opened. Unlocking the door to his apartment, he slammed the door shut behind him. Stumbling over to his couch, he flopped headfirst onto it.

_“I wonder if the necklace was from Izumi.”_

The thought popped into his head and he sighed again. Sousuke had been trying to not think about her, but that was exhausting. He felt like he saw her face in every dream and he could still clearly picture her smile when he closed his eyes.

_“I didn’t even know her that long. Why can’t I just forget? I wonder if she is as miserable as me.”_

Flipping over, Sousuke stared at the ceiling. _“This is going to be a long summer vacation.”_

_Closing his eyes, Sousuke was met with green ones looking back at him. The eyes filled with tears as they sunk below the waves. Running towards the water, he swam out to the spot, but she was gone. Diving below the surface, he tried to look for her. Gasping for air, he resurfaced. Looking out towards the sand, he noticed someone on the dock. Swimming closer, Sousuke saw Emi giggling and pointing. Glancing out at where she was pointing, he saw Izumi. Swimming towards her, he reached out his hands. Just as he was about to touch her shoulder, she turned towards him. Eyes filled with tears, she vanished._

Sitting up, Sousuke wiped his face. “I really need to see her.”


	11. Wishes

_~July 22: Sousuke~_

The clock flashed 2 AM.

Sousuke groaned and rubbed his eyes. Since waking up from his nap earlier, he had tried to exercise, watch a movie, read a book, but nothing would tire him out. The dream had left him on edge and desperate to see Izumi, but she had chosen to end things.

_“It’ll only hurt more if I go see her now and then we have to split apart again.”_

Sousuke stood up and gazed out his window. No one was walking along the streets at such a late hour.

_“Maybe I’ll just go to the beach. Izumi will be sleeping and I miss going. That might be enough for me and then I’ll be able to sleep.”_

Still wearing his clothes from yesterday, Sousuke quickly exited his apartment. Glad it was much cooler at night, he was able to walk comfortably. The humid days made moving around a chore and he already had enough to deal with.

Reaching the beach after just ten minutes, he scanned the beach. Empty. Looking out at the ocean, he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw nothing.

_“Good. She should be asleep.”_

Positioning himself far enough away so the waves wouldn’t touch him, Sousuke relaxed onto the sand. Staring up at the sky, he smiled. A full moon. Just a few stars could be seen, since he was still in Tokyo.

Seconds, minutes, and hour passed. Sousuke couldn’t force himself to sleep, but he did feel more at peace. Listening to the waves was calming. Being on this beach gave him comfort.

_“Probably because I know that Izumi is nearby.”_

Sousuke shut his eyes tightly and shook his head at the thought. _“No need to get depressed. I should probably head back now.”_

Standing up, he brushed the sand off of himself. Glancing one last time at the sky, Sousuke stopped when he noticed something. A flash of light passed across the sky.

_“Hmmm, shooting star.”_

Sousuke crossed his arms and frowned. _“Aren’t those things supposed to grant wishes? Like that works…”_

He stared out at the sea. _“Well, if mermaids exist, why can’t star granting wishes?”_

Closing his eyes, he imagined Izumi laughing at him for doing something so strange. “I wish we could be together.”


	12. Lacking Sleep

~July 22: Izumi~

Too dark. Too quiet. Alone.

Izumi couldn’t sleep. She had never had such a hard time being alone before. Sure, she always had her sister, but Umeko had been gone for two months. They had spent time apart before, but right now she just really wanted her sister. Who wouldn’t be back for at least another month.

_“I could go to one of the cities. Actually talk to others. Make new friends.”_

The closest city would take a week to swim to. Most mermaids lived near those cities, but they had always been so boring. So separate. From humans.

_“I would rather stay by the coast. I don’t want to go hide away again. We haven’t had to live with so many others since we were little. Maybe I’ll just go find one of the smaller settlements.”_

Izumi sighed, she really needed to sleep if she was going to go anywhere.

_“Maybe some air will be good. No one should be on the beach this late at night.”_

Swimming upwards, Izumi smiled as she felt the warm air touch her face. A slight breeze and a full moon. The perfect night.

Glancing around, Izumi was shocked to see someone standing on the sand. A dark figure, probably a man? The figure was looking up at something in the sky. Izumi lifted her head and saw a shooting star.

_“Oh, he must be looking at that. That’s nice.”_

The silhouette of the man reminded her of Sousuke and she frowned. _“No, it can’t be him. He hasn’t shown up here since we last talked. Why would he come so late at night to look at stars? Unless, he’s looking for me…”_

Izumi shook her head and dove back under the water. _“No, he hasn’t been back since we agreed to end things. Why would he come back? Unless he misses me? Maybe I should let him see me. If he sees me and calls me over, I’ll go talk to him. If he leaves, then that’ll settle that.”_

Izumi swam upwards so from her shoulders up she was sticking out of the water. The figure didn’t seem to notice her at first, so she waved. He seemed to freeze, before walking closer to the shore. Izumi swam closer and smiled.

_“It is him. Why does he look so sad?”_


	13. Together

~July 22: Sousuke~

“What are you doing here so late?” Izumi asked once they were both close to the shore.

Sousuke shrugged before glancing up. “I was having a hard time sleeping, so I thought I’d come relax here.”

“Are you alright?”

“No.”

Izumi frowned. “What happened?”

Sousuke finally looked down at her and sighed. “I missed you. I know what we decided on, but I can’t stop thinking about you. I just wish we could…”

Suddenly, the moon seemed to glow brighter and reflect a light on Izumi. Glancing up at it, she smiled sadly. Nodding her head, she closed her eyes. ‘What is she doing?’

Izumi began moving closer to Sousuke. Where the water ended, she stopped. Motioning with her hands, she wanted Sousuke to come closer. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she laughed.

“You’re going to have to carry me the rest of the way. I’m not going to be used to these things for a while,” she stated cheerfully.

“What are you talking about?” Sousuke asked. 

“Sousuke, look down.”

Sousuke looked to where Izumi’s tail should have been and he stiffened. Where her tail should have been. Where was her tail? Instead of her tail were two legs.

“Izumi, you…”

Izumi smirked and looked up again at the moon. “It is a very ancient spirit. Our guardian is the moon. She asked me what I wished for and I wished to be with you.”

Pulling her closer to him, he leaned his forehead against hers. “So, I can keep you with me now?”

Izumi nodded. Leaning down, Sousuke captured her lips with his. Moving his arms to wrap around her waist, he pulled her up against him. Izumi’s hands traveled across his neck, up his head, and clung to his hair. Tears fell from both of their eyes as they were finally able to truly be together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it is super short and not the best, but I didn't want to end this forever without at least putting a happy ending. I probably won't be coming back to this, but at least they can be happy.


End file.
